A growing number of people chasing the perfect photo of a shark are being attacked and left with severe injuries after getting too close.
A rise in social media videos showing people swimming close to sharks, touching and even riding them, has left experts concerned.
At least three influencers have
been bitten in less than a year, including one who almost lost his leg after being attacked by a reef shark while spearfishing in July.
In December, a Chinese content creator was bitten in the Maldives. Both incidents were caught on camera.
Last year, a tourist in the Caribbean had both hands bitten off while trying to photograph a bull shark from the shallows, according to local authorities.
Two months later, a snorkeller in Israel carrying a selfie stick was killed by sharks.
The number of unprovoked shark attacks worldwide has remained broadly stable at about 70 bites per year for the past three decades.
Tayane Dalazen, a 37-year-old Brazilian lawyer and social media personality, was on a shark-diving trip on the Brazilian coast in April when she was bitten by a 2.1m nurse shark.
It clamped its jaw around her thigh, held her down for several seconds and then released her, allowing her to escape but leaving her with lacerations to her leg.
She told the BBC: âI knew something was different because the sharks were on the surface. There were a lot of them.
âLater, I discovered [the tour organisers] were feeding the sharks so that they would interact with the tourists. When the shark bit me, the pain was very strong. I stayed calm because I knew I couldnât fight the animal.â
She posted footage of the shark bite online where itâs since been viewed tens of millions of times, despite saying she âwasnât there for social mediaâ.
She admitted she was too close to the animals.
Kristian Parton, a marine biologist and shark scientist, told the BBC: âIâm seeing these videos every single week now and itâs way more than it ever used to be. Weâre going to see people ending up in really serious incidents with sharks.
âWeâre talking about a true apex predator, a very large wild animal. You wouldnât walk into the Serengeti and try and put your hand on the face of a lion.
